Rep. Kevin Cramer: The US oil export vote- Learning from history and supporting our allies

The Hill | Wednesday, November 4, 2015 | Rep. Kevin Cramer

Much has been said and written by me and other supporters of lifting the crude export ban, focused mainly on how lifting the ban will create jobs and stimulate economic growth across the country.  While each of those benefits is reason alone to repeal the ban, little is known about how the ban came into existence in the 1970s as well as its profound effect on the geo-political structure of the Middle East and the rest of the world.

“Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it:” A timeless lesson that applies to the House of Representatives’ strong bipartisan vote to pass H.R. 702, lifting the current U.S. oil export ban.

The vote comes 42 years after the Yom Kippur War, which ushered in long lines at gas stations as a result of OPEC’s embargo against the U.S. in retaliation for supporting Israel as they were fighting for their very existence against their Arab neighbors.

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Kevin Cramer (R) has been North Dakota’s at-large representative since 2013. He sits on the Energy and Commerce Committee.